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Here's The Real Reason Why Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wears Those Short-Sleeved Kurtas

Here's The Real Reason Why Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wears Those Short-Sleeved Kurtas
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivers a speech to members of the Indian expatriate community in the United Arab Emirates at the Dubai Cricket Stadium, on August 17, 2015, during a two-day visit to the UAE. Modi is the first Indian premier to visit the UAE in more than three decades since Indira Gandhi came in 1981 and is due to address the country's large India expat community in Dubai. Indians, who form the UAE's largest expatriate community, account for about 30 percent of the country's population of eight million, with many of them labourers who were behind the construction boom. AFP PHOTO / KARIM SAHIB (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images)
KARIM SAHIB via Getty Images
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivers a speech to members of the Indian expatriate community in the United Arab Emirates at the Dubai Cricket Stadium, on August 17, 2015, during a two-day visit to the UAE. Modi is the first Indian premier to visit the UAE in more than three decades since Indira Gandhi came in 1981 and is due to address the country's large India expat community in Dubai. Indians, who form the UAE's largest expatriate community, account for about 30 percent of the country's population of eight million, with many of them labourers who were behind the construction boom. AFP PHOTO / KARIM SAHIB (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has made the short-sleeved, crisp cotton shirt paired with a sleeveless jacket a uniform of sorts for himself, would have you know that he does not have a stylist dressing him every day in designer clothes.

Speaking at New Delhi's Manekshaw Auditorium a day before Teachers Day, Modi said his sense of dressing was primarily driven by comfort.

The Indian Prime Minister responded to one of the students he was addressing: "I don't know why people think I have a fashion designer who styles me. I only dress simple and sober. In fact, I don't even know any fashion designers."

Speaking on his trademark short-sleeved kurtas, which are now known as 'Modi Kurtas', the PM said, "Long kurtas simply take up too much space in a bag! In fact, this one time, I cut off the sleeves of one of my kurtas and wore it. And I found them so comfortable, that I simply continued," he said.

Maine ek din khud hi lambe kurte ki baahe kaat di, aur woh mujhe comfotable ho gaya: PM on "Modi kurta" pic.twitter.com/neRylX3ZyY

— ANI (@ANI_news) September 4, 2015

Modi's image as a man who rose from humble beginnings and led a simple and highly disciplined life took a dent when he chose to wear a navy suit pinstriped with his name in gold to meet visiting US President Barack Obama. He later auctioned the suit.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.